Cheryl took her snowboard off and ran to the edge of the cliff.  Even though she was afraid to look over the edge, she had to. 

Her friend had just taken a 12-foot fall on his snowboard. They were riding their boards when the guy approached small snow bumps on the ground. 

He wasn’t expecting to fall off a cliff in jumping them, however. 

Looking at Cheryl from the bottom, he said, “Did you see how much air I caught from that jump?” 

Cheryl smiled upon realizing he wasn’t hurt. 

Thoughts started running through her mind.  Cheryl remembered the first time she had ever gone snowboarding. 

It had been five seasons ago.  She was a freshman in high school, and her best friend invited her to go to Snowshoe, W.Va., for the weekend. 

“I came back back from that weekend black and blue. I had bruises all over my body and had a hard time walking the following week,” she said. 

Cheryl Peskir, an ASU freshman, is one of the coordinators of the snowboarding club at Appalachian State University. 

At the beginning of fall semester, Matt Powell, who started the club, began posting flyers throughout campus. 

One day, Peskir was walking down the steps from the cafeteria to the food court and saw the flyers. 

However, after only four consecutive meetings, the club  became recognized by the university.   The initial revenues have been from the $10 membership fees.  The fee pays for a membership card, a t-shirt and stickers. 

Peskir said that, as members, students get to meet others who share the same passion for the  sport.  Also, this opportunity creates a network among snowboarders. They get to exchange information about places to go to in this area, as well as outside North Carolina. 

And, of course, snowboarders get to speak their language, or jargon while finding others to go snowboarding with them. 

“This is a way we can establish a snowboarding community.  It’s like a big family that can get together to go riding on the slopes and hang out in other social events,” Peskir said. 

For students who have never snowboarded before, or have just  started, this is still a great chance to improve their skills. 

Members do not have to be experts or professional snowboarders.  As long as students have any interest in the sport, they can become members and participate in the social events. 

“We would like to recrute experienced and non-experienced members into our club.  That way, we  can teach others who are just getting into snowboarding new techniques,” Peskir said. 

Considering the youth of the snowboarding club, only a few events have been planned for this spring semester. 

Coordinators want to have a pot luck during a week night. Each member will bring a dish and get to know each other outside their regular meetings. 

“We also want to go to Snowshoe, W.Va., during spring break; however, we get to go to local ski resorts such as Beech, Sugar and Hawksnest throughout the semester,” Peskir said. 

Upon showing regional resorts their membership card,  students get reasonable discounts to snowboard.  At Beech, for instance, on Wednesdays and Sundays, it costs $10 for the lift ticket.  The season pass for Ski Beech that would usually be $400, is $300 for members of the snowboarding club. 

Peskir, like many other die-hard, snowboarding junkies, became infatuated with the sport from her first day on the slopes.    Even after falling time after time, she was overwhelmed by how many different aspects of her life the sport affects. 

“Snowboarding makes me feel independent, because I have to rely on myself when I ride.  I have learned to be strong and to make wise decisions.  Plus, I get to do what I love with my friends,” Peskir said. 

Snowbording certainly isn’t just about excercise. 

True, it involves a lot of motion, but it can be a stress reliever for those who need to step outside of daily life. 

“When I snowboard, my mind becomes clear, and I don’t think of anything else. Snowboarding can  be very relaxing,” Peskir said. 
The snowboarding club can also provide support to members who want to compete. 

On Wednesday evenings, the Boarder Cross takes place at Ski Beech.  It is $5 to enter the competition, along with the additional price of the lift ticket. 

“Members can support you during competitions, and they will be there to encourage you.  Another cool thing is that after snowboarders from different teams compete, they get along.  There are no bad feelings left behind,” Peskir said. 

One of the goals of the snowboarding club is to form an ASU snowboarding team. 

So far, the club has approximately 15 current members. They meet every Tuesday evening at 8:30 p.m. in 204 Sanford Hall. 

The club also has a web page for students to check out. The address is www.appstate.edu/~ww33591/snowboard.html. 

Students who want more information about surfing the big white wave should come to one of the meetings or join the members for one of their pot luck dinners.